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Evaluation of Wikia
Home > Evaluation of Wikis EVALUATION OF WIKIA Description: Wikia Inc. was founded by Angela Beesley and Jimmy Wales , creator of the free open source encyclopaedia Wikipedia. The concept was meant to include topics that may not be included in a traditional encyclopedia model namely- pop culture, gaming, entertainment, and lifestyle. Wikia invites it users to contribute information and opinions on topics as they know well. Wikia’s collaborative platform serves over 3 million registered users, more than 275,000 wiki communities and 50 million unique monthly visitors. Headquartered in San Francisco with offices in New York, London, and Poznan, Poland, Wikia continues to improve the user experience based on the feedback of its global member base. In the past year, Wikia has added to their wide list of features Chat, Video, Mobile, and Trivia to enhance their communities and content. Features · Licence fee $0 · Unlimited Storage and Bandwidth Quotas · Allows for Chat, Video, Mobile, and Trivia facilities · Topic Restrictions are enforced against hate speech etc. · Host Blocking- this is basic anti vandalism measure ,which allows you to block repeat offenders from accessing your wiki. · Optional use of CAPTCHA to avoid spam bots · Allows for media attachments and revisions · Allows for export of media in many different types including HTML, XML, CSS, PDF, RSS Feeds,ATOM Feeds. · Statistical view of user inputs, edits and pages usage. · Usability features include Section Editing,Double click editing, Tool bars and Access Keys. · Syntax features include Some HTML tags, Math Formulas, Footnotes Quoting and Internal comments · Linking Features include Camel case, FreeLinks, Backlinks, InterWiki, and Image Links. · Use of Access Control List gives you fine grain permission control. You can set up lists of Users ( perhaps in groups or roles) who are allowed to access to certain parts of your wiki, for operations such as viewing editing, creating new pages, etc. Site Personality and Style: Wikia exudes a youthful, artistic and expressionist outlook, where its style can be considered immensely pleasing to the eyes - an attribute that gives the site its large number of unique visitors monthly. Wikia carries a broad banner that attempts to interest new and current users to the latest gaming and lifestyle wikis. The banner is a burst of colour to the monochromatic black and white colours of the site. Below the banner are links to popular wiki sites that were created all of which are kept in a theme that appeals to the artistic genre, however it does not push customers away with over-the-top colours and graphics. The site was designed with the user in mind otherwise known as user-centered design, where the website meets the needs of the intended users via its design. Site organization'':'' This site’s organization is well structured when it comes to having hyperlinks and pictures in their locations. The home page is not overwhelming the user with text information and most of all advertising. The use if top and bottom menus are appropriate. Nothing that is deemed unnecessary is given a space on the homepage. Everything is fitted into a category which helps to create structure. As such, the site is anything but busy and uncluttered, which is perfect for all audiences. This organization flows smoothly into the navigation of the system. Site Navigation: When it comes to navigating, the process could be seen as quite simple, clear and consistent. The usability of the site is simple where new users and existing customers require perhaps a second or two in studying the site and understanding how it works. The site is also acceptable in repeated usability when considering, if a user was to revisit this site the navigation process wouldn’t be tiring, it would rather be straightforward and simple, as such there is better retention of users through the navigation process. The site also caters for disabled persons by providing small descriptions on products. Site content: When it comes to content, Wikia has a diverse expanse of content which users can find rather easily without jumping through many hoops as it were. Content is amply categorised and structured. Additionally, it makes the customer explore what else is available on the site as it covers genres not easily found elsewhere. The content on the homepage is very appropriate, it reveal all the categories as advertised and even the ones not thought of. What users are provided with is appropriate in finding what they want. Sign up is easy and straight forward allowing novice user to not only access information but also to create their own wiki in a few simple steps. Tutorials and tips on wiki design also aid the novice and even the pro user to make the best wiki possible. Feedback and follow up on new users via email ensure that the user feels welcome to the Wikia community. The site has the capability to produce a personal or group wiki to a professional looking web page. Although when using more of the features it can become confusing for the novice user, incorporation of basic features with the tutorials make it an enjoyable experience. Site Aesthetics: This site is very simple, and all the pictures, text and colours were tasteful but very appropriate. Colours coordinate with each other and the banner grabs the user attention matching the artistic expressionist outlook of the site. The site makes a new user spend time exploring new ideas and content not easily found and encourages self expression which is an attribute of the over 275,00 wiki communities that it hosts. SUMMARY TABLE Scoring 1 – High 2 – Medium 3 - Low Home > Evaluation of Wikis